Libertarians Reject Beckwith’s Revisionist History and Authoritarian Mindset

Lieutenant Governor Micah Beckwith’s recent comments praising the Three-Fifths Compromise as a ‘great move’ reflect both a profound ignorance of history and a disturbing comfort with government-sanctioned dehumanization.

“No amount of spin can turn the codification of human beings as fractional property into a moral victory,” said Evan McMahon, Chair of the Libertarian Party of Indiana.

The Libertarian Party stands unequivocally for individual liberty, equal natural rights, and the dignity of every human being under the law. The Three-Fifths Compromise was not a step toward freedom. It was a political calculation that preserved and expanded the power of slaveholding states, delaying abolition and embedding injustice into the very framework of the U.S. government.

“Trying to call the Three-Fifths Compromise ‘a great move’ is like trying to sell shackles as freedom bracelets,” McMahon said. “It’s an insult to anyone who has lived the consequences of systemic racism as well as anyone who values liberty over government power.”

Beckwith’s remarks came in response to criticism of a bill aimed at rolling back Diversity, Equity and Inclusion efforts in Indiana institutions. Instead of defending freedom of association or equality before the law — genuine libertarian concerns about some poorly structured DEI programs — Beckwith chose to traffic in historical revisionism that erases oppression and glorifies centralized power.

“Hoosiers don’t need the government picking winners and losers in the name of ‘equity’ — and we certainly don’t need it erasing the brutal realities of slavery to score cheap political points,” McMahon said. “You don’t fight bad DEI policy by pretending America’s worst compromises were victories for liberty.”

The Libertarian Party of Indiana rejects both the coercive mandates often embedded in DEI programs and the dishonest, state-driven mythologizing of American history. True liberty demands honesty, humility, and the courage to confront — not whitewash — the injustices of the past.

The Libertarian Party of Indiana will continue to champion a future rooted in voluntary association, individual merit, and real equality before the law — not the weaponization of state power, whether it’s wrapped in buzzwords or Constitution-waving revisionism